Scary Firsts
by MarblesG
Summary: There is a first for everything. Lin just had to experience this first in a different way. Toph/Lin


**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Legend of Korra**

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Being the daughter of the greatest earthbender in the world, Lin was as fearless as any legacy of Toph Beifong's should be. However, there were exceptions.

Today should have been an ordinary Tuesday. Lin would go to school where she would display her stubbornness and cockiness just as her mother would. But that wasn't the case today. As she opened the door to the house after a long day at school which stood just couple blocks away from the police station, there was a strange feeling that rushed up her spine. Something wasn't right. Still acting daring as ever, Lin slowly entered the home, ready to spring at anything that would be a threat to her. The quietness in the house could have caused any other person to scream and run out of the house. But Lin stood confident. She looked around and took steady steps to the other rooms of the entirely stone built house, to Toph's request. As she entered the living room, she had finally found what she was looking for.

There stood three gang members. Priceless valuables that Lin had once seen covering the walls and tables were lying right in their grimy arms. These men were huge. Lin had never seen people with such large muscles. That didn't stop Lin from standing her ground.

"Hey meatheads! What gives you the right to steal stuff from the Beifongs?" Lin yelled, confident and proud.

As if they had just heard their queue, the men dropped everything on the floor, shattering many of the glass items they were to sell. Each of them stared at Lin with hungry eyes, starving for the chance to kill. Lin could read their eyes perfectly and it shook her a bit. She told herself, _I can do this. You are a Beifong!_

_Shing!_

Lin stood in horror. The three bulky were now carrying swords sharp enough to amputate her of an arm or leg easily.

Swords and knives have never been a problem for her. How could they be when her Uncle Sokka carries one everywhere? The man even let her try out his "space sword" a couple times and Lin didn't feel as closely as terrified as she is now. This time was different. Never had Sokka pointed his trusty weapon towards Lin the whole time he had it in his hand or when he was showing her how to use it. Toph would have killed him if that had ever happened and Lin knew Sokka was more scared of her mother than anything else. Other than that, her uncle had taught her that the sword was a weapon of power. That power was used to protect others and used the correct way, just as bending did. That is how Lin had grown to think of the sword. A gallant weapon used by heroes to protect others. It only took one moment to bring all that thought down.

There Lin was, staring the three swords in the face. She knew what they had the ability to do and fear was slowly causing her to visualize herself lying helpless on the floor surrounded by a pool of red. Without slight hesitation, the largest man out of the three leapt toward her with the sword above his head. Natural instinct caused Lin to dodge and start running towards the front door. The man about to end her life had landed on the ground and was now running after her with his ally right behind.

Sudden realization hit Lin. _Wait, where is the third?_

As she looked forward, the third man was at the front door, ready to kill. Lin screamed as she almost ran into the sword's sharp end and stopped literally centimeters from in front of it. She looked into the man's eyes with tears that haven't been cried for a couple months forming in her own. Before she could turn around, she was grabbed by the other two thieves from behind. Lin was not only immobilized by the men, but by panic as well.

"I'm actually a little disappointed," said the man in front of her. "Our esteemed Chief of Police's daughter can't even hold up a fight. I always knew that you Beifongs were just talk."

Lin couldn't take this fool insulting her mother's credibility. Yet she couldn't find the fuel to fight back. Instead the tears that had formed in her eyes were now streaming silently down her face. They were a sign of defeat yet she couldn't help to feel as if it were the end.

Once again the man spoke, "Now what am I going to do with this brat?" The man shoved the sword up in front of Lin's dampened face causing the young girl to flinch.

"Two for flinching!" the man laughed and suddenly slicing his sword twice down Lin's cheek. Lin screamed in pain, granting the thieves a satisfactory laugh.

"Time to finish this."

Lin closed her eyes and kicked and screamed as hard as she can. The more she did, the more the man pulled back his sword. Lin stomped on the ground. She stomped and stomped as a sign of protest, but what could have that done?

Suddenly, as she stomped once more, she felt the earth respond. She felt the ground through her feet as if they were connected all her life and spring up. As she opened her eyes, she saw a large pillar of earth sprung up from the ground where the man had once stood and facing the window to the left of the house. The groaning of a man could be heard right outside the window. She just earthbended for the first time.

The grip that was once holding Lin powerless had loosened. Lin took her chance and stomped once more sending both the earth under the last standing men upwards and sending the men up into the roof and back down towards the ground. If the hit from the roof and the ground hadn't put the men into unconsciousness, then Lin would have no other chance.

Silence once again filled the Beifong residence and Lin stood in the middle of the scene. The house was a mess from her rampage towards the front door and there were three men unconscious lying on the floor. Lin was…scared. She wanted her mom. She wanted to have her arms around her and telling her everything is going to be alright. New tears escaped her eyes as the yearning for her mother's protection grew more and more. She wanted to shut out the world and only have her mom. Lin sat on the ground and created an earth tent by instinct, just as her mother did in her stories of traveling with Avatar Aang. She was so weak. She was terrified. She was not a Beifong.

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Toph was running as fast as she could. Frustrated that she couldn't have just rode an earth wave towards the house due to the destruction of public property it could have caused, her worry grew greater. It was only ten minutes ago when the station got word of what had happened to the Beifong residence and Toph only had one thing on her mind: Lin. Other metalbending officers were ready to head to the house on Toph's queue; however Toph had been out of the station by then.

_Lin. Lin. Be okay. Please_.

Finally her feet sensed the familiar structure of the house in which her and her daughter lived. But as she approached the house, other figures caught her "eye." Soon Toph was filled with worry. Lin was only seven years old. Sure she had a fight hard attitude that replicated her own perfectly, but Toph knew her little girl couldn't fend for herself. She couldn't even earthbend which caused Toph to think of other ways this situation could have ended, terrible ways.

Toph had finally reached the door. For a second time she was scared, other than the time she was hanging off of the airship with just fingers barely holding on to the water tribe warrior's. Whatever could lie behind this door could either relieve Toph or just about kill her. Toph busted the door down with her bending and was shocked at what she "saw." She sensed three men lying on the ground. Their heartbeats were very slow, indicating they weren't conscious at the moment. Next she sensed earth raised from the ground. Toph moved towards the structures and laid her hand on them. _Definitely not a natural occurrence_, Toph thought.

The last thing she found was farther down the hallway. A small heartbeat beating so fast and….terrified. But still beating to her relief. She rushed towards the pulse but bumped into a small stone structure instead. Too focused on the hope that this heartbeat was Lin's, Toph hadn't noticed the earth tent in the middle of the hallway. She crawled towards the structure and knocked on its outer surface.

"Go away! Please, please don't hurt me again." A small voice shouted within the tent.

_Again?_ Toph said softly, "Lin, honey, it's mom."

Instantly recognizing her mother's voice, Lin brought down the earth tent and finally presented herself. Toph couldn't believe it. She could feel Lin shaking with fear. She put a hand up to her face and can feel wetness in her eyes. She moves to where Lin's hand is holding her right cheek. Lin removes her hand and allows her mother to graze upon the two cuts she had received which was now very bloody and winced at the touch. Toph was shocked. This wasn't the Lin she knew. Her Lin was tough as nails and never cried. No, this Lin was horrified.

Toph immediately grabbed her daughter and pulled her into a tight hug. Lin was now sobbing uncontrollably. The relief that she had longed for to be in her mother's arms were was finally granted. Lin couldn't help but feel so safe.

Just slightly comprehendible, Lin mumbled, "I'm sorry, mom. I couldn't be strong like you. I couldn't be brave. I can't be a Beifong."

Toph softly stroked her silky black hair as she whispered, "Lin, you don't have to be strong and brave all the time. No matter what happened, I know you tried your best to be. I am so proud of you."

"How could you be proud when all I did was run and still ended up getting hurt?" Lin said through sobs.

"Will you look around? You earthbended! My girl earthbended! And even if you hadn't, you were still so brave to take on these goons. However, next time you may just want to call the station so that this jumble of a mess won't happen again." Toph said slightly laughing.

"Although it was a laughing moment, Lin just buried herself more into her mother. Toph took this as a sign that the time for jokes was for later and held on to her daughter.

"Lin, my little badgermole, you will be able to fight off fools like these with just a flick of the wrist in no time. You will be the greatest earthbender ever. You are a Beifong."

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**First story! Please review! Also what is your guy's favorite ice cream flavor? (:**


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